Proposed immigration bill in the House of Representatives, as pertaining to STEM graduates and others in F-1

http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/F?c112:1:./temp/~c112SfYUTd:e1604:

This bill, H.R.2161, introduced in the House of Representatives, is designed to improve immigration procedures, including for graduate students in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). Please note that this bill is not yet law, and might not become law in its current form. Nonetheless, I have summarized some important points below.

1.       The bill creates a fourth category in the employment-based first preference (EB-1). Along with the existing “alien of extraordinary ability” (EB-1a), “outstanding researcher or professor” (EB-1b) and “multinational executive or manager” (EB-1c), the bill will create a new EB-1d category, for advanced graduates in science, technology, engineering or mathematics. The person would need a job offer, that is, no self-petitioning is permitted as is the case for a national interest waiver.

2.       This EB-1d category would NOT require the same lengthy, cumbersome labor certification as is required for certain current EB-2 advanced degree holders. However, an employer still would have to certify, in the same way as an H-1B hire, that the person is being paid at least the required wage, defined as the higher of the actual wage or the prevailing wage.

3.       Persons in F-1 status, regardless of whether STEM or not, would be considered to have dual intent, similar to H-1B or L-1 status holders. That is, they would no longer have the burden to prove non-immigrant intent. In other words, the fact that an applicant for F-1 status has immigrant intent, for example via having applied for adjustment of status, cannot be the sole reason for denying such an application.

The most significant implication, for STEM graduates, is the classification as an EB-1. Such a classification significantly shortens their green card waiting period, compared to EB-2, because the EB-1 category, according to the State Department visa bulletin, always has been “current,” that is, there is no backlog as with EB-2.